Choosing a Computer for Video Editing for Beginners: PC or Mac?

If you are new to the videomaking game, you’ll be wondering whether you should choose a PC or Mac for to get started with editing digital video.

Well, opinion differs.

By the way, before we go into the PC vs Mac debate, let’s get one thing clear first. Unless, you’re leaking cash left and right, take a look at the existing computer first.

I know there are some so-called professionals who’ll tell you you should have a dedicated computer for video editing and not use it for other tasks like Internet surfing or office-related work.

Well, if you’re new to the game, and have not made any money out of your videomaking efforts, just stick to the computer you have. Unless your model is from some fifteen or twenty years back, the computer will most likely satisfy you in terms of hardware requirements for editing.

At the end of the day, it’s not which computer platform you use to edit your video, it’s how technically well you shoot your video and how creatively you edit it.

Not even the most expensive computer can set things right for you.

Alright, if you’re in the market for a new computer, you would want to choose between the two platforms.

PC vs Mac
Many swear that no proper video editing can be done without a Mac. They say Windows is not suited for video editing. That may be true before the Windows XP operating system came into the picture.

With Windows you have the added advantage of a variety of third party editing programs and choose one that suits your budget.

As I was writing this article, I met a wedding videographer. I asked what system he was using – PC or Mac? He has been a Mac user, but nowadays he uses PC with Adobe Premiere CS. He said it’s easier to accept the files he shoots on his DSLR whereas if he uses a Mac he would have spend time on file conversion.

With PC video editing technology improving these days, you can’t really tell much of a difference with the final product whether it was edited on PC or Mac.

If it’s possible, if you have a friend who owns a Mac, ask to use it for a few days and test out the iMovie program that comes with it.

If you like it and have the budget, go for a Mac. Otherwise, a Windows computer would do just fine.